Beyond Tea-Party Somnambulism!

Posts tagged ‘Dr. No’

Andy Harris begins the New Year by continuing his lies and misrepresentation of the facts! Instead of voting for the “fiscal cliff” legislation, he prefers that taxes on his cronies (i.e., rich doctors, along with the likes of the Koch brothers, Romney and the other wealthiest Americans) stay at one of the lowest rates they’ve been in 80 years! Remember the ’50s & ’60s, when the US was growing into the economic superpower that it became? Top tax rates were at some of the highest…90%…and so-called “job creators” didn’t blink an eye at the chance to start a business! When I was starting my businesses, the tax rate was not as important as whether I felt the business was a good one and I could make a profit.

The truth be told, it was Harris and his cronies that created the “fiscal cliff” during the debt-ceiling debacle last summer; he and his Tea Party cronies refused to raise the debt-ceiling for monies that were ALREADY allocated by Congress, NOT for new spending, which was another lie that he liked to bandy about! So, they forced the plan to raise taxes on the Middle Class and the “sequester”, thinking that the GOP would take the White House and the Senate in the 2012 election. What he failed to realize is that the majority of Americans could see through his and the other GOP candidates’ lies and 19th-century ideas…and they were SOUNDLY rejected!

Instead of standing up and representing the people of the 1st District, Harris continues into 2013, catering to the rich, those who contribute to his campaigns, who are mostly from out-of-state, and ignoring the needs of the people who deserve his attention, including the farmers on the Eastern Shore! Oh, yeah, did I mention that he refused to support the 2012 Farm Bill? If saner minds hadn’t prevailed, we could be paying $6 or $7 for a gallon of milk!! Way to go, Dr. No!!

It is a sad day for the Eastern Shore, to have a liar and a sham, like Andy Harris, be re-elected. I was so hoping that this, my first post after the election, could call for a coming together of the “right” and “left.” But, upon hearing Harris’ comments after his win, I am more committed than ever to replace him as our Representative.

Andy “Bizarro” Harris

He lives in a ‘bizarro’ world, claiming to have “reached out” to Democrats, when we know that he has voted against any proposals put forth by House Democrats or the White House. His approach has even earned him the nickname, “Dr No”, because that has become his standard vote and position! And, according to his post-election comments, he will continue to live by his moniker and obstruct any progress in the House.

I am not whining about Harris’ win; the former Democratic candidate, Wendy Rosen, certainly didn’t help, by resigning a week after the deadline to remove her name from the ballot. As such, Dr. John LaFerla could only run as the Democratic write-in candidate. I am just astonished by the failure of the commonsense Eastern Shore voter to see through the disguise and insincerity of Harris’ campaign. He is definitely a “RINO” (Representative In Name Only)!

When Harris holds himself out as a “great communicator”, saying that he is bringing both parties to the table, it just doesn’t fit with his history and performance, whether in the State Senate or in Congress. In fact, Harris has been a major roadblock to both, the Maryland delegation and the House, where there have been multiple efforts by the Democratic leadership and the White House, to repair the economic mess perpetrated by the previous administration.

Harris lies when he talks about helping farmers, since he has voted against the Farm Bill, introduced by his own Party! Without its passage, our farmers will be hurt financially. He has voted against education, medicare, social security, job creation, health care and protecting our air and water, or the Chesapeake Bay. In fact, only 4 bills were introduced (and passed) by Harris in his 2 years as Congressman. They dealt with reducing the tariffs on foreign-made men’s and women’s shoes! While millions of Americans were still unemployed and suffering, Andy embraced a foot fetish!

“Dr. No” – Doing nothing for the Eastern Shore!

Aside from the sound bites and clichés he has come to rely on, Harris cannot point to any real action on his part, to help our district or its residents. He has failed to spur job creation, being more interested in expanding ‘fracking’ even though it has been shown to be destructive and dangerous, than he is in cooperating on solving our “Fiscal Cliff.”

He is a pawn of his corporate campaign contributors, mostly from out-of-state, and the sooner 1st district voters open their eyes, the sooner we will get a Representative who truly represents our interests. Until then, “Dr. No” will continue to be the obstructionist and do-nothing elected official, that he has been since his days in the Maryland Senate!

Yesterday Andy Harris held his “town halls” in Easton and Worcester. ‘Samo-samo.’ Remember, he schedules these meetings at inconvenient times for most people (this one was 2:30-3:30pm). The Tidewater Inn in Easton experienced nothing new from Harris, or “Dr No”, as his opponents refer to him. He opened with a presentation consistent with the Tea Party wing of the Republican party line. Total yawn!

The liar, the spinner, the obstructionist…is now tap dancing his way out of the room!

There were about 60 people attending who represented at least four different groups. Of course, there were the head-bobbing faithful, but also Democrats, environmentalists and postal employees. So, it was not a universally-supportive group.

Those critical of Harris’ record did well in that they did not localize their seating, but were spaced around the room, which meant they could not easily be identified when he took questions. Richard Calkins, President of the Talbot Forum, got the first question, and was clearly prepared as he stood with his clipboard and had a significant preamble to his question.

Other questioners were from the environmentalist group and Democrats not happy with Harris’ obstructionist approach to doing business. In each instance, Harris succeeded in not answering the question. He always started with, “Before I get to this question, let me finish about what Ronald Reagan did…” Sure…and he never got back to the question.

One questioner, clearly from the Shore and among the Republican faithful, delighted Harris as he went on and on about how his Medicare premium was rounded up to the nearest dollar and how distressed he was about that. The faithful, and Harris, lapped it up.

The tactics of Harris’ opponents were good, but did not prevent him from ducking the issues and responding with pure spin and outright lies. And, as we all know, he is a 1st-class liar and distorter of the truth.

What Harris opponents did not do was to respond to his exhortations with murmurs of discontent or laughter, which would have helped affect the climate in the room. There also were no demonstrators outside with signs, which would have made a public demonstration of disagreement and invited the press to provide some minimal coverage. Generally, locals know who is representing the StarDem (local paper) and they can be button-holed. There are other tactics that can be employed and there is an obvious need to make common cause with our various anti-Harris constituencies. Pre-planning and tactical coordination among the various groups would be useful. Harris follows the Koch Brothers playbook when it comes to these public forums and he is good at not being put on the difficult spot of not being able to tap dance his way out. And, let’s face it…he is an Arthur Murray professional when it comes to tap dancing his way around issues and questions.

Everyone leaves a legacy. When you die, you’re remembered for how you tried to make a better world for your children and grandchildren. In the case of Congressman Andy Harris, his legacy will be one of “lies, misleading distortions and half-truths”, resulting in a less safe & healthy world, for women, children and the chronically ill.

Proud of his legacy!

The Republican playbook in 2012 includes taking credit for other people’s work. Romney has taken “a lot of credit” for the auto industry recovery. “Bogus” is the nicest word I can muster on that claim. Not to be outdone, Harris sent a Press Release last Friday, claiming credit for keeping the USPS from closing facilities or offices. Can anyone tell me what Harris did? Anyone familiar with this issue, including 100s of postal workers on the Eastern Shore, know it was Sens. Mikulski and Cardin that led the fight. Mikulski even sent letters to Harris, seeking his support to save these jobs, without even a response! Chalk one up for “lies.”

Polls show how most women feel about the lack of Republican support on issues from health insurance to equal pay for equal work. Harris and his extremist cohorts have failed to support women’s issues. Of course, it should be different when it comes to violence against women, right? Wrong! Last month, Harris and the right-wing radicals refused to extend the Violence Against Women Act, which has reduced domestic violence by 58% since 1994. Last week, Harris, in an attempt to fool women everywhere, voted for a gutted version. The purpose was to muddy the waters, and by confusing people, to appear to care about women. What is it about the treatment of women in the 1800s that is so appealing to Harris? Here’s one for the “misleading distortions” column.

Now, for ”Half-truths.” Truth: Harris talks big on “making America energy independent.” But the “lie” asks: Why do we sell America’s oil and natural gas abroad? Why hasn’t Harris ever supported research into alternative energy sources that could reduce costs of traditional energy? Why is he so intent on supporting “fracking?” The answers all involve PROFIT and CONTRIBUTORS. Harris’ CONTRIBUTORS want bigger PROFITS! “Fracking” is being suspended by other

Andy “Dr. No” Harris is willing to sacrifice the health of our children and grandchildren, for the temporary profits of his corporate supporters.

countries and across the US, because of health, pollution and earthquake dangers. Will it create jobs here on the Eastern Shore? No. But, Harris gets lots of money from the Koch brothers and other out-of-state supporters in the oil industry. Harris has even voted to take away all powers of the EPA to control “greenhouse gas emissions” which affect our health and the environment. Pollution of the 1900s, here we come…again!

These are just a few issues that affect Harris’ legacy. Ask yourself: Is this a legacy I would be proud to leave my children and grandchildren? I sure wouldn’t.

Rep. Andy “Dr No” Harris recently compared contraception coverage mandate in insurance policies to Communist “Religious Persecution.” Yes, the man who wants less government intrusion when it comes to our air, water, financial and drilling controls, but more government intrusion when it comes to our bedrooms and private lives, now wants to compare the availability of contraception services in insurance policies (which is not forced upon anyone) to a totalitarian form of government. Nice stretch, Andy! But, as we already know, you are adept at lies, distortions and half-truths.

Club for Growth supports Dr. No, and vice-versa!

Of course, Harris, who likes to call together last-minute “Town Hall Meetings”, usually scheduling them for mid-afternoon, so no one can really attend, is now shying away from in-person confrontations, instead, choosing to show up on the telephone! I guess it’s much easier to “accidentally” hang up on someone, than get up and walk out of the room.

This is Harris in an interview with the right-wing group, Concerned Women for America:

“What we need is—we need civil action. We need people to be talking about it, really expressing outrage to their friends and neighbors at how this could be happening in America. You know, my parents came from Communist countries, they actually escaped religious persecution like this, only now to have it happen here, right here in America.”

Is it any clearer why we need to replace this person? He disappears after the election, failing to do anything constructive for his district or the people in it, and is supported by outside interests. Can anyone name one thing that he has done for the people of the 1st district? Of course, except trying to divide us!

Do we really want our elected representatives set up as puppets of groups from outside Maryland? Rep. Andy Harris is one such puppet! The following is a post on RightWingWatch.org, from 2008, about our Congressman, Andy “Dr. No” Harris. It shows how misleading his support was and how he still panders to outside forces, instead of working on issues that matter to his constituents. He has given in to being a puppet of the extreme right-wing radicals who have funded his campaigns and ordered him how to vote in Congress, not for the best interests of his district, but for the social agenda of those puppeteers, who are based outside of Maryland.

This week, the Club for Growth declared victory, as incumbent Rep. Wayne Gilchrest, lost the Republican primary to the Club’s handpicked candidate. The Club’s PAC, which has carved out a niche for itself, with right-wing primary challenges, spent more than $600,000 on the race, mostly with TV ads calling Gilchrest a “liberal.”

But the Club for Growth, known for its hard-line supply-side economics, wasn’t the only outside group giving a boost to challenger Andy Harris. “It is imperative that Dr. Harris win this contest!” declared Focus on the Family founder, James Dobson, who trumpeted right-wing complaints about Gilchrist.

Club for Growth puppet, Andy “Dr. No” Harris

“He voted against the constitutional amendment (on) marriage; he voted to allow homosexuals to adopt children; he had been pro-abortion,” Maryland state Sen. Alex Mooney told Family News in Focus.

This isn’t the first time the Club for Growth and Dobson have joined forces: the duo also backed a right-wing primary challenge in 2006 that ousted incumbent Rep. Joe Schwarz—who, like Gilchrest, had the backing of President Bush. Dobson crowed that the upset would “send a mighty signal that the days of anti-family, liberal Republicans are finally over.” Former Sen. Lincoln Chafee, another Club for Growth target, accused the economic group of having a hidden social agenda in its choice of candidates and targets.

If so, it would only mirror the Religious Right, whose definition of “values voter” expands as needed, to fit the GOP’s platform. In a recent appearance on MSNBC together, Family Research Council President, Tony Perkins, and Club for Growth President, Pat Toomey, were in full agreement on the importance of the “three-legged stool.” “For [the] Republican Party to win they must have a conservative candidate who brings together the conservative coalition: fiscal conservatives, defense conservatives, and social conservatives,” said Perkins.

Indeed, while Dobson recently endorsed Mike Huckabee—the Club for Growth’s enemy number one —Perkins has maintained his ambivalence, always making note of the stool.